Syria reasserts sovereignty over occupied land

Syria has reaffirmed its sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which Israel occupied in 1967, saying the territory must be completely restored.

“Syria’s sovereign right over the occupied Golan, till the line of June 4th 1967, is non-negotiable,” Syria’s UN Ambassador Bashar al-Jaafari was quoted as saying by Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).

Al-Jaafari stressed that Syria’s occupied territory should be completely returned. He made the remarks on Thursday at a UN Security Council meeting to discuss the situation in the Middle East.

The Israeli regime staged a full-scale war against Arab territories in 1967, occupying the West Bank, Lebanon’s Shebaa Farms, and the mountainous Syrian region of Golan Heights.

The Syrian envoy noted that the “odious” Israeli occupation of Palestinian, Syrian, and Lebanese territories, its forced displacement of their people, confiscation of properties, and construction of settlements on occupied lands relied “on Takfiri Zionist creed,” and was equal to “terrorism.”

Damascus says Israel and its Western and regional allies are aiding the Takfiri terrorist groups, which are operating inside the Arab country. Tel Aviv has also carried out sporadic strikes against the Syrian forces and allies amid their advances against terrorists.

The Israeli regime has even set up field hospitals to treat wounded militants, who are evacuated from Syria or flee to the Golan Heights. It claims it would offer such treatment to those straying into its “territory.”

Last June, The Wall Street Journal said Israel had been providing the Takfiri terrorists in the Golan Heights with a steady flow of funds and medical supplies.

The Syrian army has also repeatedly seized huge quantities of Israeli-made weapons and advanced military equipment from the foreign-backed militants inside Syria.

Jaafari said the West, in particular the US, has always protected the Israeli regime, granting it immunity from prosecution despite Tel Aviv’s repeated violations of hundreds of UNSC resolutions, which demand it to end the occupation.

The Syrian envoy referred to the regime’s recent massacre of the Palestinians, who protested near the Gaza border against the Israeli occupation, and rallying for their right of return to their homeland